ARIZONA COURT OF APPEALS UNDOES SUMMARY JUDGMENT AGAINST FORMER TASER EXECUTIVE

By Kent Berk on May 27th, 2010 in BLOG, BUSINESS LAW, EMPLOYMENT DISPUTES, employment law

The Arizona Court of Appeals recently reversed and remanded a trial court’s grant of summary judgment against a former Taser executive. Taser sued the former executive claiming, among other things, that he breached his fiduciary duty to Taser by competing with the company while still employed there. The Court of Appeals found a genuine issue of material fact existed as to whether the former executive had merely begun making preparations to compete or actually began competing with the company while still employed there. Only the latter is a breach of fiduciary duty in Arizona. The case is helpful in that it discusses the factors involved in deciding what constitutes preparing to compete while one is still employed – an issue often confronted by many employees and employers in these sorts of cases. It is also interesting to note that the Court of Appeals on its own accord entered summary judgment against Taser on its claims that the former executive usurped a corporate opportunity and had a duty to disclose his plans of forming a competing business. Click here to read the decision.